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Roy School celebrates History Teacher of the Year Jake Rhoades

Jake Rhoades, joined by his wife, Rebekah and daughter McKinley, holds up the immense cake Roy School had made for a celebration Monday.

Photo courtesy of Amy Bergum

This past summer, Jake Rhoades, history teacher at Roy Public School, was named the 2018 Montana History Teacher of the Year by the Glider Lehrman Institute of American History. This week the school held a ceremony to celebrate Rhoades and his award.

According to a spokesperson for the Gilder Lehrman Institute, the History Teacher of the Year award highlights the “crucial importance” of history education. Each year the Institute selects a “teacher of the year” from each state. For Montana, the honor went to Rhoades.

While typically the honor goes to one of the larger schools in Montana, it is Rhoades’ excellence in teaching that took him to the top this time.

“His love of all things history shines through to his students,” a press release from the Gilder Lehrman Institute said.

It was one of Rhoades’ colleagues who nominated him. As the Montana winner, Rhoades received a $1,000 honorarium, and the Roy School library received American history books and other educational materials.

“This honor will influence my teaching going forward,” Rhoades told the News-Argus when the word of his recognition broke in July. “It raises the bar for me, and encourages me to keep on keeping on. I’ve become aware of so many cool resources that are available for teaching history that it makes me want to do more.”

At the celebration at Roy School on Monday, Rhoades received a framed copy of the certificate naming him Montana’s History Teacher of the Year, a poster made by the students and a very large congratulatory cake. He was joined by his wife, Rebekah, and daughter McKinley.